Papa John’s signs deal to bring over 1,000 stores to China

Papa John’s International has announced the signing of a deal with Fountainvest Partners, a leading Asian private equity firm, to open 1,350 locations in China by 2040. This new franchisee development agreement will supercharge the brand’s presence in China, which is one of the fastest growing delivery pizza markets in the world. 

Fountainvest Partners have acquired a stake in a current Papa Johns franchisee, CFB Group, which owns 160 restaurants across Shanghai and southern China.  

“This partnership with FountainVest marks another major milestone in achieving Papa Johns global growth potential, reflecting both the scale of our brand’s global opportunity and the quality of franchisees that are investing in our future,” said Rob Lynch, president and CEO of Papa Johns.  

“Papa Johns has enormous global development whitespace in the U.S. and in attractive growth markets, especially relative to our peers. Our new development agreement with FountainVest alone stands to grow Papa Johns current global unit count by 25 per cent.” 

Since its foundation in 2007, Fountainvest has always focused on concepts and businesses that would appeal to China’s rising middle class. 

“At FountainVest, our investment process begins by identifying growth-oriented, industry-leading enterprises that are aligned with the growth dynamics of the Chinese marketplace,” said Andrew Huang, managing director of FountainVest.  

“Papa Johns premium position offers an attractive opportunity in the QSR sector, which has already been proven in China and which we believe will continue to thrive. We look forward to working with the Papa Johns team as we rapidly scale the brand’s presence across China.” 

“FountainVest is exactly the kind of partner we look to help grow our brand internationally. They are well-capitalized, experienced operators with deep knowledge of their local market,” said Amanda Clark, chief development officer of Papa Johns. 

“They clearly recognize our brand’s promising outlook and strong unit economics. Together, we will bring our BETTER INGREDIENTS. BETTER PIZZA. promise to millions of new customers in one of the largest QSR markets in the world.”